Swapping front struts. Why can't you just use an impact?

[Matts175]

After 3 days of reading, I'm 98% sure I'm going to go with Bilstein 5100s for leveling my front end. In every video I have seen, the person uses 2 hand wrenches to take the top nut off of the factory strut. Is there any reason that you couldn't use an air impact gun? Seems like it'd be much quicker and easier.

 

[Seth_5.7]

You can use an impact, but with the spring compressors holding the spring, all that jittering may cause something to happen. Mostly just a safety precaution.

After 3 days of reading, I'm 98% sure I'm going to go with Bilstein 5100s for leveling my front end. In every video I have seen, the person uses 2 hand wrenches to take the top nut off of the factory strut. Is there any reason that you couldn't use an air impact gun? Seems like it'd be much quicker and easier.

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[Matts175]

Makes sense. Thank you.

 

[AKArmendariz]

Why did you decide to go with that Bilstien set up?


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[danielmid]

Depending on the condition of the existing struts it will also just cause the strut shaft to spin and not loosen the nut.

 

[WilliamS]

I used an impact both times Ive done my bilsteins. The first truck the shaft would spin like crazy. Big ol Vice grips fixed that issue. The 2nd set it spun off easily with the impact.

If you dont have a industrial style fixed compressor I would be very careful of using an impact. The autozone ones that you hand tighten can break lose and you have a rocket.

 

[Whitd5]

In my experience with removing springs from struts... I have better luck getting the nut off if a little bit of spring pressure is against the top mount. It will usually keep he shaft from spinning. Of course you have to be careful and not leave excess pressure when getting the nut off. I normally compress the spring until it is free and then loosen enough to apply pressure to the top mount. When the nut is loose and mostly off, I compress the spring down further again before removing the nut. It’s all a balance of what works but while still being safe.

 

[Racing Woody]

On all my McPherson style struts (BMW race cars) I would just hit it with an impact on a concrete floor and shoot the strut and spring at my 30 gallon trash can. In 20 years of doing this, I have never had any kind of accident. Difference here is the springs have to be compressed to put back in where as te BMWs we were switching out springs and shocks ( they were a insert shock in the strut).

More or less it is just safety. Vice grips on the shock shaft is the quickest fix for a spinning shaft and impact.

Cheers have fun and be careful


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